The sound of the whistle before it took off again, terrifying to start with and then thrilling, was the clincher.
From that day on Tony Simons was hooked on trains.
Simons, 70, will this King’s Birthday weekend showcase his model railway at the Hastings Model Railway Club’s third model train exhibition at the Cheval Room in Hastings.
“Trains sort of hook you when you are young and growing up you start to get an interest in it and that stays with you throughout your life.”
Tony Simons, the president of the Hastings Model Railway Club with his model railway layout. Photo / Warren Buckland
Simons hoped the exhibition - which includes 27 model railway layouts that show New Zealand railway stations back in history as well as layouts of British, American and German prototypes - would encourage others to join the club.
He said people from across the country including Wellington, Carterton and Te Awamutu would model their hand-built and store-bought railways.
“We have got quite a wide variety of different types of modelling going on.”
He said there was a range of layout sizes, with the biggest being a 5-metre by 7-metre display and layouts small enough to fit into beer crates and suitcases.
Simons would display one of his handbuilt layouts which depicted Blackball Railway Station on the West Coast, a station that closed in 1968.
He said he had been working on the project for three years and was only a quarter of the way finished.
“I’m going to be working on this until I’m 100.”
Simons said he was most passionate about studying past scenes from archives, books and photographs and from visiting the sites of historical New Zealand Railways.
“Being able to model something that was part of our history and bring it to life is something that I enjoy.”
Tony Simons with his layout of the Blackball Railway Station on the West Coast of the South Island in 1954. Photo / Warren Buckland
He said it was harder to make New Zealand layouts as they required the tracks, trains and scenery to be handcrafted because they weren’t available to purchase from a store.
“New Zealand modellers build the trains first then build the layout around that.”
Tony Simons felt he would be working on the model railway for many years to come as he wanted to get the details perfect. Photo / Warren Buckland
The Hastings Model Railway Club was started in 1956 and currently has 38 members, which Simon said included all ages of enthusiasts from teenagers to retirees.
“We have seen an influx of people interested in trains over the last two to three years and we are getting more people joining us.”
The exhibition will be open on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 4pm with an entry fee of $8 for adults and $2 for children and a family ticket for $20.
Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings and Central Hawke’s Bay newsrooms. She covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and has a love for sharing stories about farming and rural communities.
